This love, it is a distant star
by Bajni
Summary: Thorin is still very much in denial about his growing affection for Bilbo, so when the Rivendell elves start taking a liking to him, Thorin does the only thing he knows how to do in such a situation: be even more grumpy, rude and argumentative. Prompt fill, Bagginshield, rated for smut.


**AN:** I'll just leave it here. It was supposed to be a prompt (see at the bottom of the page ) fill, but it got way out of hand.

Title taken from "Into the open air" from Brave.

Huge thanks to my friend Justyna for encouraging me to keep writing. I had serious problems finishing this one.

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**..::This love, it is a distant star::..**

**PART I**

The splendour of the valley of Rivendell was incomparable to any Bilbo had ever seen or brought to life in his overly vivid, as for a respectable hobbit, imagination. It was breathtaking and enhancing in its beauty, yet its glory didn't lay in precious gems or metals that seemed to be the most important of values for the dwarves. Most of the buildings ware made from simple materials, but what made it so special was the centuries-old craftsmanship lacing the architecture with near-perfection, and the strange something floating in the air, constantly reminding the guests they were to enter a place containing wisdom far older than any of them (perhaps only except Gandalf, but the wizard was an entirely different case).

It was mostly because Bilbo couldn't see a single flaw in the elven race, that he could not understand the dwarves' hostile behaviour towards them, and especially Thorin's.

His thoughts were, however, not meant to dwell on this particular matter, for there happened something much more unexpected than the unwillingness of his companions to go and seek aid among the elder race.

A simple gesture – a hand on his shoulder, was what had started it. In any other circumstances Bilbo would consider the situation as a perfectly normal, even friendly and caring. It was as usual as helping your neighbour with his gardening or hugging your aunt on her birthday. The sort of behaviour that was selfless and without any outer motive other than just showing others you cared. But what was putting off in this case was the fact that there never really was any genuine friendliness on Thorin's part for the hobbit.

What was even worse was the sudden warmth that pulsed through Bilbo's body, flowing from the pit of his stomach and filling him with completely absurd contentment.

When the dwarf moved from his side and obscured the glorious view of the valley before the hobbit's eyes, he looked tentatively into the blue orbs and was astonished to find them swirling with uncertainty.

Bilbo glanced to the path below and noticed that the rest of the company was already heading for the elven residence, led by overly-enthusiastic Gandalf. He heaved a sigh and returned his gaze to the leader of the company.

There wasn't even a trace of the previous vulnerability on the dwarf's face, which was instead contorted in its usual frown, with sparks of annoyance dancing angrily in the dark azure eyes. All at once the warmness in Bilbo dispersed and he found himself glaring back at Thorin when the clutch at his shoulder became far firmer than necessary.

"You better keep up, halfling," – the dwarf growled in a rough voice pushing Bilbo forward, onto the path. The hobbit huffed in annoyance, too tired to even turn back and produce a proper reply matching Thorin's words in their spite. Instead his thoughts drifted towards the question why, in the first place, he had decided to leave his home; and the hobbit sighed regretfully.

If only he had glanced back, he'd catch sight of Thorin's self-doubtful face. But he hadn't.

Bilbo's uncertainty was soon pushed into a more insignificant place of his mind when the company actually entered the elves' residence and came to a halt on a round terrace.

Things got wild without a warning and the dwarves' lack of trust towards elves became even more obvious than ever.

When a group of mounted elves came galloping into the valley, the company instinctively took defensive positions. Bilbo looked around confused but had no time to act on his own, for one of the dwarves pulled him into the cycle they had formed (in this rush he didn't even notice who that was). Within seconds they were surrounded by elves on their huge horses. Even though one of them dismounted and came over to Gandalf with a friendly expression on his face and the others didn't seem to be planning on attacking anytime soon, the dwarves were still as tense as when facing orcs. The thought didn't sit well with Bilbo. He was in awe with elves. They were so much more than he had imagined, and he hadn't even exchanged a word with any of them. He completely couldn't understand the dwarves' lack of manners, when, as it turned out, the elven leader – Master Elrond, only invited the company to dine and rest in his home.

As they were led to where they could put down their bags, Bilbo couldn't help but stare with wonder at everything they were passing. When he spotted a few elves holding books and probably discussing their contents, since from time to time they were pointing at the pages for others to see, the hobbit mustered all the courage he had and neared them. Maybe he wouldn't if he saw that behind him Thorin halted his steps and, when he realized in which direction Bilbo was going, his brows furrowed into a deep frown.

"Mae govannen," – the hobbit greeted the group in sindarin, then bowed playfully, earning the elves' melodious laughs and bright smiles in return.

"May we be of help, little friend?" – one of the elves asked him in westron, crouching before Bilbo so that their height was more or less equal. The other one also came closer and ruffled the hobbit's hair, which only made said hobbit's cheeks dust lightly pink. The elf chuckled at his reaction, voice jingling in the air like small silver bells.

"Um- I was curious if you have a library here?" – Bilbo asked, stuttering a bit.

"See the building behind us?" – the elf before Bilbo motioned towards it, - "That's Lord Elrond's library. It's one of the richest in the whole Middle-Earth. You can find books in all languages here and from all three ages."

The hobbit looked up at said building in awe. It was huge – at least four times bigger than the largest library in the Shire, but also very beautiful. Even though it looked massive, the building made an impression of lightness, with all the floral ornaments, slender pillars and a shining dome in the centre.

Bilbo opened his mouth to express the feelings running through him at the sight of the library, but was suddenly stopped by a booming voice from behind him.

"Master Baggins," – the voice undoubtedly belonged to none other but Thorin Oakenshield – "what are you doing?"

The hobbit swirled around and was faced with a clearly discontent image of the company's leader.

"He was simply getting acquainted," – one of the elves answered instead of Bilbo, casually putting a hand on the hobbit's shoulder, - "with ones, that, unlike you, have some proper manners."

Thorin scowled at the elf and, before Bilbo could react, he grabbed the hobbit by his arm and pulled him out of the elf's reach.

"Don't you dare touch him!" – the dwarf said with venom dripping from his voice. Without waiting for a reply he turned away from the group and walked away, pulling Bilbo behind him. The hobbit was so embarrassed he didn't even attempt to struggle.

When they were out of sight of the elves, the dwarf stopped and faced Bilbo.

"What were you thinking going to them like that?" – he asked gruffly – "you are well aware they're not to be trusted, yet you put yourself defenceless before them."

"They could have done something to you," – Thorin added a bit more quietly.

Bilbo stared at him in surprise. He couldn't believe that Thorin's dislike towards elves was this deep that the dwarf was sure they were such brutes to harm a defenceless hobbit.

"Listen, I know you despise them and I'm sure you have your reasons, but there's no need for such hostility. I can take care of myself, despite what you think. So please, Thorin, stop being rude and don't interfere, when all I'm trying to do is have a decent conversation with them."

The dwarf was looking at him sceptically and Bilbo felt an impression he might have said too much.

"You don't know how deceitful they can be. One moment they're your allies and the next they treat you like enemies. You better remember that," – with that the dwarf released Bilbo's arm and stumped away. The hobbit hadn't quite realized, Thorin was keeping hold of him the whole time, and at the loss of the contact felt strangely empty.

Yet, being a hobbit, he wasn't going to ponder on that with an empty stomach.

He took off in the direction where the company was being led before he'd separated from it, hoping that he'd find the rest of them still there. He didn't even walk for a minute when somebody put their arm over his shoulders, successfully breaking his balance. When they both fell to the ground in a heap, Bilbo heard an amused chuckle from behind.

It was none other than Kili that thought it was fun to lean on the poor hobbit. And the one laughing was obviously Fili, inseparable from his younger brother.

"How are you, Bilbo?" – Kili asked the hobbit from beside him on the stony path, beaming with joy.

Bilbo somehow managed to scramble to his feet – "I feel like if a heavy dwarf's just pulled me to the ground, but otherwise I'm quite fine," – he answered, aligning his jacket.

"I'm not heavy!" – Kili protested loudly, earning his brother's laugh.

Bilbo faced them and rose his eyebrows – "All right, what did you want? I'm sure this attempt at attacking me wasn't selfless. And before you even begin – I'm not taking part in any of your pranks."

"Bilbo, we're utterly selfless when it comes to this," – Kili began, smiling a bit too sweetly as for the hobbit's taste.

"And by 'this' we mean helping you with our uncle," – Fili continued his brother's train of thought, - "He can get a bit, hmm- forceful sometimes, but he wishes for your contentment."

Kili giggled at that but when Bilbo looked at him quizzically, he stopped.

"Well, I'm not sure if you're right, but even if you are – Thorin is still way too rude, and especially towards elves."

"You have got to be more patient with him," – Kili chirped in before the blonde dwarf could reply.

"Kili is right," – Fili confirmed his brother's words, - "uncle must be horribly jealous and that's why he acts this way."

"Jealous of what?" – Bilbo asked dumbfounded.

But the dwarves had already gone forward, probably towards the rest of the company. The only reply Bilbo got was their laughter.

When Bilbo finally sat behind a table, too big for him, his stomach was already grumbling loudly in protest of how long the hobbit took to get to the dining hall. He instantly started digging in, appreciating the various types of vegetables the elves had provided. The music they started playing was very soothing and the hobbit felt it was his first such pleasant meal, since before the dwarves had come to his smial.

After he had finished eating, Bilbo decided to use the advantages of being a hobbit and he sneaked out of the dining hall unseen by any of the dwarves. He pointed his steps towards the large library, whishing for a while of rest after satisfying his hunger.

This time no one was in front of the building and when he went inside he was also met with silence, probably because it was already darkening and night was fast approaching. He took one of the yellow candles standing on a table close to the entrance and wandered further in.

He felt overwhelmed by the sheer size of the library, but when he actually saw it was full of books, in all the languages and from all the ages, like the elves had said, Bilbo thought he might spend his whole life in there and enjoy every second of it. He scanned through all the titles on his way, able to read only maybe a half of them, when one book got his attention. It wasn't particularly thick, or with covers made from shining materials like some of the previous ones. It was bound in leather and had a single white star on the cover.

The hobbit took it and marched towards the nearest armchair. He put the candle on a small side-table and, after squirming a bit to find a comfortable position, opened the book. It was about astronomy, about the origin of stars, the moon and the sun. Without even realising it he completely lost track of time.

When he finally glanced up from the pages it was because he heard footsteps. They were getting closer with every moment and Bilbo suddenly felt insecure that maybe he wasn't supposed to be here. His fears were, however, completely erased when none other than Gandalf came into his sight. The wizard was talking with Lord Elrond and when they neared Bilbo also realised Thorin and Balin were walking behind them, talking quietly among themselves.

When Gandalf caught sight of him, he motioned for the hobbit to join the group. Bilbo put the book down on the table and walked towards them.

As it soon turned out he wasn't needed there at all, because the group was discussing the map of Erebor, which Thorin was unwilling to show to Lord Elrond. If he didn't feel such hatred for elves, there would be no problem at all – Bilbo thought, annoyed by the dwarf's attitude.

Fortunately, due to Gandalf's persuasion, Thorin gave in and took the worn out piece of parchment from an inner pocket in his upper garments and passed it to the elf. From there on the topic switched to a more academic one and Bilbo found himself listening with growing interest. It wasn't until Lord Elrond expressed his disapproval of the company entering the mountain that Bilbo once again felt he was not needed by the group.

The elf took his leave then, closely followed by the wizard. The only ones remaining except Bilbo were Thorin and Balin and they were talking about the quest, unaware, as it seemed, of the hobbit's presence. So he also stepped out of the round terrace and went back into the library, connected to it. He didn't realize there were eyes following him on his way.

Not long after, the hobbit had to admit he was lost. Without any light he didn't know where he was in the large library and when he finally managed to find an exit, it was a different one than that he had first entered through. This one opened up to a glade, seemingly silvery under glow of the full moon. He wandered outside, admiring the view of the mountains standing proudly on the horizon. Only now did he realise how much they resembled dwarves, who preferred them for their homes over any other hill, forest or plain.

Without a thought he sat on the grass, more soft than even the one in the Shire and immersed himself in the lovely warm night. His eyes traced almost lazily everything that was around him and when they explored all that surrounded him, they rose up, glinting when they met thousands of stars.

He let himself fall to the ground, sprawling among the pleasantly smelling flowers. The hobbit began following various constellations, he learned the names of from the book earlier, with his gaze. His idyllic moment was interrupted when he heard footsteps, muffled by the grass, nearing him.

Soon he was met with an upside-down image of Thorin standing above him, which made the hobbit smile a little. The dwarf looked somehow different in the pale moonlight illuminating him and the stars pulsing above his head like a crown. His lips tilted a tad bit upwards, but Bilbo wasn't sure if it wasn't just his imagination.

"What are you doing, Master Baggins?" – Thorin asked, sounding almost tentative.

"Stargazing," – Bilbo answered simply.

The dwarf turned his eyes towards the mountains. His expression looked as if he was considering something. When he finally pointed his gaze back towards Bilbo, his voice didn't sound like his at all and was full of doubt – or such an impression the hobbit had.

"May I join you, Bilbo?"

The hobbit nodded in response, not really pondering upon it. Only once the dwarf had settled to his left did the realisation hit him – for the very first time had Thorin called him by his name. This thought and the presence beside him suddenly made Bilbo aware of how hot his cheeks felt.

He focused his gaze on the sky above trying to sort out the thoughts running through his head. When the warmness of his face became less palpable the hobbit risked a glance at the dwarf. Bilbo expected him to be gazing at the stars above, but instead found the blue eyes fixed on himself and much closer than he had thought.

"Um-, " – the hobbit tried to think of something that would ease the awkwardness he so suddenly felt – "Could you maybe sing one of those songs you sang in my home?" – he asked hurriedly, not wanting to embarrass himself by not saying anything.

Thorin looked at him with surprise, yet after a moment began to hum one of the songs of his people. When he finished he found Bilbo asleep against his arm. The dwarf pulled his coat around him and embraced the hobbit lightly, heeding not to wake him.

He didn't tell him that singing was a very important step in dwarven courting.

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**AN:**Written for a request from vampygurl402. Full prompt:

"Thorin is still very much in denial about his growing affection for Bilbo, so when the Rivendell elves start taking a liking to him, Thorin does the only thing he knows how to do in such a situation: be even more grumpy, rude and argumentative. Bilbo thinks the reason for Thorin's behaviour is because of his hatred for elves. Fili and Kili pretty much stand in the background, laughing at their uncle and teasing Bilbo, who never quite gets what they are hinting at.**"**

Part II will be up tomorrow with some smut, as requested by vampygurl402.

Thanks for reading and see you again later! :)


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